Russia Oks Kyoto Protocol

October 23, 2004|By David Holley Los Angeles Times and Information from The Washington Post was used to supplement this report.

MOSCOW — Russia's lower house of parliament approved the Kyoto Protocol on Friday, virtually guaranteeing that the treaty to fight global warming will take effect early next year.

Ratification still requires approval by the Federation Council, or upper house of parliament, and the signature of President Vladimir Putin, but those steps are widely expected. Russian approval would give the treaty enough worldwide support to take force 90 days after Russia's ratification documents are delivered to the United Nations in New York.

Because the Bush administration pulled out of the agreement in 2001, the pact's requirements to reduce so-called "greenhouse gas" emissions would not apply to the United States. But the business units of U.S. corporations operating in countries that have approved the treaty would be affected.

The vote Friday was 334 in favor, with 73 against and two abstentions.

"Now the issue is resolved," said Grigory Pasko, editor-in-chief of Ecology and Law, a Russian-language magazine. "The approval of the Federation Council is just a technicality. In the end, despite the views of his own advisers, Putin chose in favor of ratifying, and in our country, whatever Putin decides immediately becomes a legal reality."

Putin had endorsed the accord several times in the past few years without ever actually allowing a Duma vote. The breakthrough came in May, when he concluded a deal with the European Union in which he agreed to secure ratification in exchange for EU support for Russian membership in the World Trade Organization.

But Mikhail Delyagin, chairman of the Institute of Globalization Problems, a Moscow think tank, said he thought the decision to back the treaty also reflected a desire to defuse Western criticism on human rights issues.

The upper house is due to consider the treaty Wednesday; the treaty then is expected to go to Putin for his signature.

The treaty already has been ratified by more than 120 countries. It was designed to slow global warming by reducing air pollution, particularly the release of carbon dioxide, which many scientists think creates a "greenhouse" effect. Industrial nations that sign on are required to reduce their emissions of six key gases to 5.2 percent below 1990 levels by 2012.

Russia's support is needed to reach a key standard for the pact to take effect: Approval by countries that accounted for at least 55 percent of global emissions in 1990. Russia's share of emissions that year was 17 percent; the United States was responsible for 36 percent.

U.S. withdrawal meant that ratification by nearly all other industrial countries was required for the treaty to take force. Canada, Japan and members of the European Union have all given their backing.

"This puts a challenge to the United States -- will it continue with a policy of environmental isolationism, or will it join the rest of the world in addressing the global warming problem?" Annie Petsonk, international counsel for New York-based Environmental Defense, said in a telephone interview.

In any case, U.S. corporations active in signatory countries will not be able to ignore the treaty, Petsonk said.

The Los Angeles Times is a Tribune Co. newspaper.

Information from The Washington Post was used to supplement this report.

KEY POINTS IN THE KYOTO PROTOCOL

Obliges leading industrialized countries that ratify the pact to cut emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases by an average of 5.2 percent from 1990 levels by 2012, and other industrial countries to stablize emissions.

Countries may offset requirements by properly managing forests and farmlands that absorb carbon dioxide, known as "carbon sinks." Nations can earn further credits by helping developing countries avoid emissions. Agreement also allows for emissions trading -- buying and selling right to pollute.

To take effect, the accord must be ratified by 55 countries responsible, as a group, for 55 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions. Goes into effect 90 days after receiving sufficient ratification.